Reviews from a small country

John Jenkins, Too Much Drinking On A Sunday. E.P. Review.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Often in life the artist only allows you to see what you need to see, you witness the birth, the adolescence, the moments in between, the subtle changes in appreciation as they find their feet, as they delve into the corners of their mind in search of new ways to make the audience laugh, love, weep and feel the pain and joy of existence.

The artist will willingly ask you to join them on the journey, they will come bare-breasted, they will don the war paint, they will appeal to your own inner being to throw the spears of anger at the world, they will appeal to you to hold their hand when the art hurts; but even after all this they will only let you in so far, the truth of their soul they keep wrapped up and away from the overpowering glare of the sunlight and from the harm of constant rain.

You never truly get to know the artist until a moment of clarity, of infinite beauty comes out of their souls and blinks hard as the nakedness is felt, their skin full of goosebumps and their presence keenly felt.

John Jenkins has always worn his heart on the Merseyside sleeve, his lyrics have been a godsend to the ears and the music that gratifies everything else, whether in collaboration with Jon Lawton and the special selection of musicians he places absolute trust in, or even on his own, just a guitar for company, is absolute; yet in that open sleeve is a beating heart of consequence and drama, of lyrics that really are poetic, demanding and full of imagery and it is no less evident in John Jenkins latest E.P. release Too Much Drinking On A Sunday.

It is a moment for the fully naked, a soul laid bare, tremendously great songs, funny, enlightening, unguarded, the openness of the artist to show what beats under the skin, a heart that wants to be seen pumping away, shouldering the blame, taking the applause; this is an E.P. that has been released and which embraces the chance to feel the rain and the heat of the day in equal measure.

The songs, Katie, Wishfully Dreaming, It’s Hard To Say Goodbye (When You Are Already Gone),Naked and the E.P. title track Too Much Drinking On A Sunday are amongst the finest pieces of work to have come from John Jenkins, a source of music that highlights just how important the maxim of art is, in writing, you have to constantly be giving a little piece of the soul away to capture the moment completely. It is a moment that is honestly blessed in this release.

Being naked is not a sign of vulnerability, it is the strength to be seen as being comfortable in your skin, your own mind, and there is nothing greater to applaud.